Rebecca Black

Singer / Internet Celebrity

Born: 21 June 1997

Birthplace: Anaheim Hills, California

Best known as:

The teen Internet sensation who sang "Friday"

Rebecca Black was a 13-year-old middle school student when she became an Internet and music sensation because of "Friday," a painfully catchy pop song that brought her widespread scorn -- and lots of publicity. Rebecca Black's family paid a company called Ark Music to produce a music video for the teen, who had been taking dance, voice and modeling lessons and performing in school plays. The video for the song "Friday" went viral, and within a month Rebecca Black and her song were getting noticed by the mainstream press. Her "hit" song, about hanging out with friends and getting ready for the weekend, had its share of sincere fans, but was more famous for the way people made fun of it. Facing the haters, Rebecca Black appeared on television talk shows across the nation and said she would keep on singing. Shortly after appearing in a video with Katy Perry ("Last Friday Night"), Black got involved in a legal dispute with Ark Music in June of 2011 and her video for "Friday" was pulled from YouTube.

Extra credit:

The video "Friday" also featured Benni Cinkle, a classmate of Rebecca Black who became known on the Internet as "Awkard Dancing Girl."